Public Opinion/Polls

There have been four major polls taken in the United States on the subject of Darfur and the government's response to the genocide.

Key findings:

Nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of Americans support the use of targeted individual sanctions, including asset freezes and travel bans, against Sudanese leaders responsible for planning and executing genocide — even though respondents were told that some of these officials occasionally provide intelligence to the United States on al Qaeda activities.
Fifty-four percent of Americans support denying entry in US ports to oil tankers that have carried Sudanese oil. Provisions for both targeted sanctions and port-entry denial have already been signed into law by the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act, but have not been enforced.
Americans support cooperation between the US and the International Criminal Court (ICC) to bring the perpetrators of the Darfur genocide to justice. A majority (53 percent) want the United States to help the ICC, even if there is a chance in the future its prosecutors may some day attempt to charge Americans with war crimes for their operations in Iraq and elsewhere.
Four out of five (80 percent) of Americans support a policy of mandatory genocide education in US public schools, believing that despite the other important topics schools must cover, they should also teach about genocide. Currently, only six US states require schools to teach about the Holocaust, and none require schools to teach about other genocides or mass atrocities.

Key findings:

A 62 to 27 percent majority of the public would like to see the United States play a leading role in developing new and better ways to prevent and react to intentional problems like Bosnia, Kosovo, Rwanda and Darfur.
Most people (82 percent) favor sending an international force to Darfur.
Events in Darfur have been in the news for several years, but only nine percent of adults feel they know "a lot" about what is happening there, while another 39 percent think they know "a little." Almost half (47 percent) say they know "nothing at all" (22 percent) or "not that much" (25 percent).
The more people know about Darfur, the more likely they are to favor sending international peacekeepers, even if Sudan opposes their use.

International Crisis Group/Zogby: June 2005

Key findings:

80 percent agreed that the Janjaweed attacks on civilian populations in Darfur can accurately be called "genocide" or "crimes against humanity", with response higher among Republicans (82 percent) than Democrats (79 percent).
84 percent said the U.S. should not tolerate an extremist government committing such attacks and should use its military assets, short of putting U.S. troops on the ground, to help stop them.
91 percent said the U.S. should cooperate with the International Criminal Court to help bring to justice those accused of crimes against humanity.
Strong majorities supported tough sanctions on Sudanese leaders who control the militias (81 percent), a no-fly zone over Darfur (80 percent), and NATO logistical and troop support for an expanded African peacekeeping force (76 percent).

Key findings from the PIPA/Knowledge Networks poll, which surveyed people in the United States:

Asked whether UN members should "step in with military force to stop the violence in Darfur," 61 percent said that it should, while 32 percent said that it should not.
A majority, albeit a slightly smaller one, also favored contributing US troops to a multilateral operation in Darfur. Asked "If other members of the UN are willing to contribute troops to a military operation in Darfur, do you think the US should or should not be willing to contribute some troops as well?" 54 percent said that it should, while 39 percent were opposed.
Support is even higher for providing equipment and logistical support to the African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur. Respondents were told, "At present there is a peacekeeping force in Darfur made up of soldiers from African countries. But this force is quite weak and its presence has not stopped the violence. The African Union has asked NATO for equipment and logistical support." They were then asked, "Do you think that NATO, including the US, should or should not provide such help?" Seventy-one percent said the US should, while 21 percent said it should not.

Key findings from the GlobeScan poll, which surveyed people in eight African nations:

Overall, 65 percent of Africans interviewed believe the UN Security Council should have the right to authorize the use of military force to prevent severe human rights violations such as genocide, while just 19 percent are opposed.
Support was strongest among those in Ghana (80 percent), Kenya (75 percent), Nigeria (66 percent), Tanzania (66 percent), Zimbabwe (65 percent), and Cameroon (64 percent), while milder support was found among Angolans (55 percent) and South Africans (47 percent). Opposition to UN intervention was the highest among Angolans (37 percent), but in most other countries less than one in five were opposed.
Africans show widespread openness to the idea of multilateral military intervention in their own country in the event of a conflict "like Darfur." When asked who they would prefer to intervene in the event of such a conflict, UN military troops received the widest endorsement (30 percent), followed by the African Union (22 percent). The idea of intervention by rich countries acting alone was endorsed by just 5 percent.

Read GI-Net's assessment of the significance of these polls, "Recent Polls Indicate Africans, US Citizens Support Intervention," July 20, 2005.

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